Calvin to Host Jordanian Ambassador

March 22, 2005 == MEDIA ADVISORY

Calvin College will host an honored guest on March 30 as part of a press
conference and sneak preview of the Petra: Lost City of Stone exhibition.

Karim Kawar is Ambassador of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan to the United
States of America and the Republic of Mexico.

He will speak at Calvin College both at the 9:30 am press conference on March
30 and in a 3:30 pm talk that day in the Meeter Center Lecture Hall at Calvin
that is free and open to all.

His afternoon talk will address Jordan's role in today's Middle East, its
relations with the United States, its perspective on the developments
unfolding, and Jordan's efforts in addressing the challenges and opportunities
facing the region today and in the future.

Kawar was appointed Ambassador in July 2002 and is one of the youngest of
Jordan's Ambassadors. He has a well-established reputation as a prominent
leader in developing Jordan's Information and Communications Technology sector,
and is dedicated to advancing US-Jordanian relations through enhanced economic
and cultural exchanges. Kawar also aims to promote Jordan as a high-tech
center in the Middle East and an investment hub.

Kawar grew up in Amman, Jordan and graduated from Boston College in 1987 with
a B.Sc. in management, finance and computer science. At the age of 20, Kawar
established his first company and headed an umbrella group that encompassed 10
information systems and software companies.

In 1999 Kawar was appointed to the Economic Consultative Council by His
Majesty King Abdullah II. The Economic Consultative Council was the first
21-member body that included public and private sector leaders established to
advise the Monarch on economic issues.

He is a founding member of several business associations and NGOs among which
are the Jordan American Business Association (JABA), the Young Entrepreneurs
Association (YEA) and the Jordanian Intellectual Property Association (JIPA).

Kawar is married has one son and two daughters.

NOTES:

For more on Kawar, see
http://www.jordanembassyus.org/new/ambassador/indexamb.shtml

Organized by the American Museum of Natural History and the Cincinnati Art
Museum, and presented under the patronage of Her Majesty Queen Rania
Al-Abdullah of Jordan, Petra is the first major cultural collaboration between
Jordan and the United States. Air transportation generously provided by Royal
Jordanian. In Grand Rapids, Petra: Lost City of Stone is presented by
Huntington Bank - West Michigan. For more on Petra: Lost City of Stone, see
http://www.calvin.edu/petra/

-end-
Received on Tue Mar 22 12:49:20 2005